Judge orders girls’ bathroom access for transgender student

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A federal judge has rejected an Ohio school district’s challenge to Democratic President Barack Obama’s rule on transgender bathrooms.

In a decision Monday, Judge Algenon Marbley ordered the Highland Local School District in Morrow County to treat an 11-year-old student who is biologically male but identifies as female “as the girl she is.” That includes calling the student by a female name and female pronouns and giving the student access to the girls’ restroom.

Highland sought to block enforcement of the Obama administration rule on the grounds that it made alternative bathroom accommodations for the student and that use of the girls’ restroom would infringe on other students’ rights.

Messages seeking comment from the Department of Justice and attorneys for the school district and the student haven’t been returned.